Down hole safety valves are a critical component in oil and gas wells. They act as a failsafe to prevent the uncontrolled release of reservoir fluids in the event of a worst case scenario surface disaster.
Down hole safety valves are typically cylindrical in shape. They are installed in the production tubing and are typically held in the open position by a high-pressure hydraulic line extending from the surface. They are placed as far below the surface as is deemed safe to avoid the effects of surface disasters.
Down hole safety valves are commonly uni-directional flapper valves which open downwards. With this configuration, the flow of fluids from the surface cause the valve to open, while the flow of fluids from the well bore cause the valve to close.
Down hole safety valves occasionally accumulate scale, sand, and other 10 debris on the parts of the valves that create a seal. The scale, sand, and other debris prevent the valves from sealing, which basically renders the valves useless. In the past, operators attempted, with limited success, to remove the scale, sand, and other debris by running coil tubing down the well and introducing a solvent into the profile of the valves. The purpose of the solvent was to dissolve and/or flush out the scale, sand, and other debris from the seal.
Operators also attempted to remove the scale, sand, and other debris by running a nipple brush into the profile of the valves. Because the valves were required to be in the open position when the nipple brush was positioned in the profile of the valves, the brushing action of the nipple brush would only affect the flow tube, and not necessarily the seal.
The present invention is designed to remove scale, sand, and other debris from down hole safety valves to enable a non-sealing valve to once again seal when in the closed position.